The Qur’anic Botanical Garden project of Qatar Foundation (QF), launched in September 2008 as a global first, aims not only at the conservation of the relevant plants but also that of the heritage, the traditional knowledge, and the Qur’anic terms.
“The Qur’anic Garden is the first of the four components of QF’s Green Projects, a programme designed to promote conservation and further understanding of the country’s natural resources,” according to scientific adviser Professor Dr Kamal El Batanouny.
Qatar Arabian Desert Gardens, the Bio-dome, and the Mozah Rose are the other three components of Green Projects, the concept of which is based around the need to create environmentally-friendly projects.
“We are basically stressing the importance of the environment in both economic and human development,” he explained in an interview with QF’s monthly magazine, The Foundation.
The Qur’anic Garden is to comprise all the plant species mentioned in the Qur’an and those in the Sunnah (Deeds of the Prophet) and the Hadith (sayings of the Prophet).
It will also exhibit the botanical terms mentioned in the Qur’an, explaining them in the context of modern science.
“There are a lot of botanical terms that are mentioned, but people don’t understand them. The garden will allow us to explain them in a botanical setting,” Dr Batanouny said.
The Green Projects is in consultation with museums such as the Qatar National Museum to see if they can help in this regard.
There is also potential for collaboration with QF’s Faculty of Islamic Studies, also located in Education City like the Qur’anic Garden.
“There are about 90 plant species mentioned in the Qur’an and 50 in the Hadith, but we have about 300 species in Qatar. If you add what exists in Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE, then there are several thousand,” he asserted.
Highlighting the significance of the project, Dr Batanouny observed that during the course of his studies over the years, he has found that people below the age of 50 know nothing about Qatar’s native plants.
“Even the Bedouin, who used to walk on foot in the desert, now go past in a four-wheel drive. In Arabia as a whole, the people were once dependent on these herbs and plants. Some of these are now extinct or will disappear,” he warned.
“The Qur’anic Garden is the first of the four components of QF’s Green Projects, a programme designed to promote conservation and further understanding of the country’s natural resources,” according to scientific adviser Professor Dr Kamal El Batanouny.
Qatar Arabian Desert Gardens, the Bio-dome, and the Mozah Rose are the other three components of Green Projects, the concept of which is based around the need to create environmentally-friendly projects.
“We are basically stressing the importance of the environment in both economic and human development,” he explained in an interview with QF’s monthly magazine, The Foundation.
The Qur’anic Garden is to comprise all the plant species mentioned in the Qur’an and those in the Sunnah (Deeds of the Prophet) and the Hadith (sayings of the Prophet).
It will also exhibit the botanical terms mentioned in the Qur’an, explaining them in the context of modern science.
“There are a lot of botanical terms that are mentioned, but people don’t understand them. The garden will allow us to explain them in a botanical setting,” Dr Batanouny said.
The Green Projects is in consultation with museums such as the Qatar National Museum to see if they can help in this regard.
There is also potential for collaboration with QF’s Faculty of Islamic Studies, also located in Education City like the Qur’anic Garden.
“There are about 90 plant species mentioned in the Qur’an and 50 in the Hadith, but we have about 300 species in Qatar. If you add what exists in Saudi Arabia, Oman and the UAE, then there are several thousand,” he asserted.
Highlighting the significance of the project, Dr Batanouny observed that during the course of his studies over the years, he has found that people below the age of 50 know nothing about Qatar’s native plants.
“Even the Bedouin, who used to walk on foot in the desert, now go past in a four-wheel drive. In Arabia as a whole, the people were once dependent on these herbs and plants. Some of these are now extinct or will disappear,” he warned.
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